Raisin in the Sun

Racism is defined as a belief or doctrine that inherent differences among the various human races determine cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that one's own race is superior and has the right to rule others. Now many pieces of literature that are in the Maine South curriculum involve the subject of race, but the play A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry puts a different spin on the race issue. A Raisin in the Sun does not use the typical black vs. white scenario, it broadens the subject of race into a group of people and their rank in the social, and economic world. It’s about a economically lower class struggling to find that window of opportunity to make their lives better.

Walter is one of the main characters in the play, and throughout the play he struggles to find out who he really is. Walter is similar to the character of Huck Finn. Throughout The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Huck tries to find where his place is in society. Huck looks past the fact that Jim, his slave, is black and considers him more as a friend. Even though others frown upon that. Just like Huck, not many people agree with the ideas of Walter, in fact at times Walter even hurts the family. When Walter makes the mistake of using all the money that mama gave him to invest in the liquor store, and his “friend” runs off with it, Walter is in a difficult emotional state. Mama says to him, “What you need me to say you done right for? You the head of this family. You run our lives like you want to. It was your money and you did what you wanted with it. So what you need for me to say it was all right for? So you butchered up a dream of mine - you - who always talking 'bout your children's dreams..." (Act II, Scene I, pg 87). Walter realizes what he has done, and knows it is time to be a man. Mama said that he is in charge of the house and he is the head of the family now, and the social status of the family really affects him.

Although Walter made many mistakes, he emerges into a man throughout the story. When Mama made the decision to buy a house in an all white neighborhood, Walter was against it. Obviously they were wanted, if they sent someone down there to offer them money not to move in. At first Walter thought it would be a good idea to accept the money, but he realized this is that little window of opportunity to make their lives better. Mr. Linder comes to offer the family money for them not to move into Clybourn